Japanese social gaming company GREE (TYO:3632) has announced its Q3 FY11 financials for the three months ending March 31.

Net sales were ¥16.4 billion (around $198 million), up 77 percent year-on-year.

Net income was ¥8.2 billion ($99 million), up 56 percent.

GREE bought US gaming network OpenFeint for $104 million in April, but that acquisition will be listed in its Q4 figures. 

Who's a big boy?

GREE pointed to the opening up of its social mobile gaming platform to external developers - it now has around 800 titles from approximate 400 developers - as a key driver of revenue growth.

During the quarter, a new advertising program was launched as well as new payment methods from NTT DoCoMo and au added.

The platform is also being extended to iPhone and Android devices. Currently there are around 45 smartphones titles available from 40 developers.

GREE claims to be the largest Japanese social network with 25.06 million users across mobile and PC. Yet back in February, arch rival DeNA said its Mobage platform had 24.5 million users, so it's a neck-and-neck comparison.

On the up and up

Taking the nine month period of FY11 into account, GREE had net sales of ¥43 billion (around $520 million), and net income of ¥12.6 billion ($152 million).

It expects full years sales of between ¥54 to 60 billion ($650 to 725 million).

It has current assets of ¥41 billion ($500 million).

[source: GREE (PDF)]